Implanted in everyone’s mind are the warmth, aroma and comfort of holiday or weekend dining at home.   Images and smells abound, and indeed will not go away, of family congregating at home while the bird is in the oven or the roast is slowly cooked.  While comfort foods are frequently side dishes or prepared entrees, the comfort foods we like best are slow cooked, braised or roasted entrees.  Comfort Foods now are found increasingly on restaurant menus in part because no one has the time to slow cook at home.

Recreating comfort food satisfaction is easy if the food is tender, juicy, creamy, flavored with a sauce, hot and varied with an assortment of accompanying veggies and carbs.  There seems to be a direct correlation between time in the oven and flavor.  Low temperature cooking of red meats and poultry for extended periods guarantees tenderness and juiciness.

Leading Slow Cooked Comfort Foods

Fish, Shrimp and Seafood cook very rapidly and with very little fat they are not good candidates for braising and roasting.  Roast chicken, 29% share, is the leading slow cooked comfort food on the menu.  Chicken accounts for 34% of all slow roasted items followed by Pork with 25%, Beef at 14%, Lamb 8%, Turkey 7%, Duck 7% and Game Birds/Meat 5%.

Source: 1763 slow cooked center of plate entrees in MenuMine database

Most Popular Cooking Sauces for Slow Cooked, Braised and Roasted Meats

There are hundreds of sauces used to cook and finish slow cooked meats.  Most popular are barbecue sauces, au jus, gravy, wine, garlic, cream, mushroom and butter sauces.

Flavor Variations for Sauces

It is advisable for menu developers to be expansive when describing a cooking sauce for slow cooked meats.  BBQ sauce in the menu item description will sell product, but Hickory or tangy BBQ Sauce might work better.  Likewise, Au Jus might be more successful at creating a taste image when paired with rosemary, thyme or sherry.  If a menu item uses a wine sauce, specifically state the type as red or Madeira or chianti or other.

Seasoning Slow Cooked Meats

Garlic is no doubt used on the majority of slow cooked meats, but only about 15% of menus indicate they use garlic.  The table below is a testament to the relative popularity of seasonings used with slow roasted meats and it is also an indication that the dining public will favorably respond to hints of rosemary, sage, saffron, ginger, parsley and thyme.

Flavor Variations for Seasonings with Slow Cooked Meats

Garlic is most often paired with a cooking process (roasted) and with other seasonings including herbs, rosemary and sage.  Lemon is most frequently paired with herbs, garlic, pepper and basil.  Mustard sauce is most often paired with honey, whole grain, three grain, stone ground and dijon.  Butter sauce is most often paired with lemon, shallot and herb.

Leading Veggies Served with Slow Cooked Meats

Veggies served with slow cooked meats are generally described simply as mixed or assorted.  Apparently, diners have an image of mixed veggies consisting of 3 or 4 veggies with a carbo thrown in.  Specifically mentioned veggies include carrots, onion rings, mushrooms, broccoli and cabbage.

Leading Carbos Served with Slow Cooked Meats

Most popularly menued carbs include potatoes, with 63% of slow cooked meat accompaniments, rice (16%), beans (8%), pasta (4%) and noodles (3%).

Slow Cooked Meats on Chain Menus

Further assurance of a tender, juicy and tasty braised or roasted selection comes from a flavorful sauce selection.  Whether a slow cooked entrée is beef, pork, duck, chicken, lamb or turkey, a complementary gravy or sauce is a necessity.